Today, I am reviewing another hard rubber tenor saxophone mouthpiece from Benjamin Allen. It is another 10E model but this one is at a huge .135 tip opening. I have to admit that I have never played a .135 tip opening before. I usually start complaining that a tip opening is too wide when I hit […]
Reviews
Benjamin Allen Brighter 10E+ Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece
Today, I am reviewing another hard rubber tenor saxophone mouthpiece from Benjamin Allen. It is the 10E model but it is a Ben’s brighter version of this model. This model doesn’t have a name yet so for the sake of this review I will just call it the 10E+. Benjamin Allen mentored under “Doc” Tenney […]
Benjamin Allen 10E Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece
Today, I am reviewing a hard rubber tenor saxophone mouthpiece from Benjamin Allen. It is called the 10E model and if that sounds familiar it is because I reviewed a 10E years ago that was crafted by Paul “Doc” Tenney. Benjamin Allen mentored under “Doc” Tenney and after Doc’s death decided to carry on his […]
Viking M58 and M60 Valkyrie Cognac Tenor Saxophone Review
Today, I am reviewing the Viking M58 and M60 tenor saxophones. This is another great saxophone that is manufactured in Taiwan. I had been hearing about the Viking tenor saxophones for a few years now and have been very curious to try them out. Rich Maraday is the owner of Viking instruments and he was happy to […]
The Real Jazz Solos Book Review
Today, I am reviewing a new transcription book titled “The Real Jazz Solos Book”. This is another great book by Hal Leonard that is filled with great jazz solo transcriptions. Unlike many other transcription books, The Real Jazz Solos Book has transcription from a variety of different musicians including as far back as Louis Armstrong […]
Saxophone Microphone Review and Audio Shootout Part 2
Walter Ruckdeschel wrote a great in-depth review of 8 different stand mounted microphones that can be used for live gigs a number of months ago. I was so fascinated that I asked him if I could post his finding here for everyone to see. Walt emailed me today and said that he had just completed […]
D’Addario Select Jazz Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece
Today, I am reviewing a new mouthpiece from D’Addario called the Select Jazz alto saxophone mouthpiece. I heard about the D’Addario Select Jazz model from a friend of mine who ordered one from Sax Quest and was blown away by it. His email and raves were enough to rouse my curiosity and review one of […]
RS Berkeley Legends Dexter Gordon Tenor Sax Mouthpiece
Today, I am reviewing another RS Berkeley Legends tenor saxophone mouthpiece that was sent to me by Les Silver at RS Berkeley. RS Berkeley has come up with the revolutionary idea of trying to find mouthpieces that were played and loved by jazz legends (deceased and still living)………and then copying them exactly so that we […]
Phil-Tone Rift Alto Mouthpiece Review
Today, I am reviewing another great mouthpiece by Phil Engleman at Phil-Tone mouthpieces. Phil Engleman is the founder of Phil-Tone mouthpieces and I have reviewed a number of his excellent mouthpieces in the past. The Equinox,the Eclipse, the Solstice, the Tribute, the Sapphire, etc…………… Phil came out with this new alto sax mouthpiece a […]
The Real Latin Book Review
Anyone who has been following my blog for awhile knows that I can be a bit of a nut when it comes to Real Books. I love getting new tunes that I have never played and trying them out on gigs. Sometimes when I do a duo gig for a cocktail hour the piano player […]
ReedJuvinate Woodwind Reed System Review
Today, I am reviewing a product called the ReedJuvinate Woodwind Reed System. As a woodwind player, you are probably already aware of what a pain reeds can be to keep and store. How do you best store them? I’m always curious about the different ways people store their reeds when not in use. I’ve seen […]
Rigotti Gold Reed Strength Comparison
Today, I thought it would be interesting to write a reed strength comparison article on my blog. I was trying a new Phil-Tone Mosaic 7* tenor mouthpiece this morning with different strength Rigotti Gold reeds when I had the idea to record some clips and throw it up on the site to see what some […]
Phil-Tone & Theo Wanne Mosaic Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece (Updated)
(Update: this original Mosaic review was of a prototype Mosaic mouthpiece but since the review Phil has tweaked and I think improved the original design of the Mosaic mouthpiece. He has been kind enough to send me a new model to try. I am updating this review and sound clip for the new production model.) […]
Reed Placement Poll
I thought it would be interesting to run a poll to see where everyone places their reeds on the mouthpiece when setting up. I know many of you will think this is nonsense and you might assume that we all do this the same but I have had so many students come in my studio […]
Morgan Fry Ebonite Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece
Today, I am reviewing another mouthpiece made by Morgan Fry. Morgan Fry is a great mouthpiece maker and refacer in England. I have reviewed some of his mouthpieces in the past and had him do some refacing work for me. I have always been impressed with his work and craftsmanship. If you do a search […]
Morgan Fry Ebonite Alto Saxophone Mouthpiece
Today, I am excited to review a new mouthpiece made by Morgan Fry. Morgan Fry is a great mouthpiece maker and refacer in England. I have reviewed some of his mouthpieces in the past and had him do some refacing work for me and have always been impressed with his work and craftsmanship. If you […]
Saxophone Microphone Review and Audio Shootout
I recently had a member on my site (Walter Ruckdeschel) post an in-depth review of 8 different stand mounted microphones that can be used for live gigs. I was so fascinated that I asked him if I could post his finding here for everyone to see. If I didn’t have my hands full teaching and […]
Vigilante Detroit Rock Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece
Today, I am reviewing a mouthpiece made by Jennifer Price at Vigilante Mouthpieces. There are 10 models to choose from on the Vigilante website. Today, I am reviewing the Detroit Rock which is the brightest mouthpiece that they make. (I also just did a review of the NYII to which is their 4th brightest mouthpiece) […]
Vigilante NYII Tenor Saxophone Mouthpiece
Today, I am reviewing a mouthpiece made by Jennifer Price at Vigilante Mouthpieces. There are 10 models to choose from on the Vigilante website. Today, I am reviewing the New York II which is the 4th brightest mouthpiece that they make. (I also have a Detroit Rock to review next which is their brightest mouthpiece.) […]
Mouthpiece Recording Test Survey
I have been experimenting lately with different recording distances and settings for my mouthpiece reviews. Usually, I record dry with no effects about 2 feet from the microphone. I’ve noticed that darker sounding mouthpieces can sound rich and beautiful in this setting but many times the brighter more powerful mouthpieces can sound harsh, shrill, edgy, […]
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